It used to be that conservatives found IVF to be evil, and that the children that resulted from it were not even human.

I still believe they believe that. That group of children includes my son. So, you know, when I say this hits personally, I mean it.

That said, they have now created a mythology to punish women and their families by making an embryo a child in the eyes of the law in Alabama. It is meant to muddy the waters, hurt those they do not see as people, and to exert control.

If we ran this country based on facts instead of myths, we wouldn’t be in this place. We would not have judges gleefully harming people for wanting a family.

But we do not live in such a place. The law is used to hurt. The law is used to hate.

On of the more jarring things I have learned upon moving to Minnesota is that there are pockets of this state that are virulently conservative. And no, not in the fiscal “I hate paying taxes” kind of way.

I mean in the let’s use the Bible to jusify hating anyone who doesn’t look or act like us kind of way. You know, things you expect in the Deep South. Or Orange County.

Scumbags like this are represented by Michele Bachmann. No, I am not kidding. The kind of folks who keep her in office and on some religious crusade to bully children who might even think they are not conventionally straight. Enough to the point that they attempt suicide over the harsh words, bullying, beatings, and the willingness for adults to purposely look the other way as their neighbor’s kids are abused.

Thankfully, and oh so slowly, these rotten people and their culture of fear are making national news.

This needs talked about. This needs to be stopped.

And, honestly, decent Christians need to call out these folks. This is exactly the face of religion that turn off so many from listening to what is otherwise a good message.

Not sure I am totally on board with the message but the guy has a point.

Bullies for Jesus. Soon to be sanctioned by law.

If you made this up, you’d be sued for slander.

Alabama wants to give it’s lawbreakers a choice: do your jail time or go to church.

One, of course, this is unconstitutional to the core.

Two, wouldn’t this revoke a church’s tax free status?

Three, this proves that even Christians believe that going to church is punishment.

Your tax dollars at work.

The FBI is teaching its new agents that Muslims – all Muslims – are dangerous and to be suspicious of them.

So much for that “liberty and justice for ALL” bullshit we say we run our nation by.

Check the article for links to some of the odious training material.

Mother Jones covers more bigoted proposals from the nation that supposedly guarantees freedom for all.

This is despicable reactionary crap from a bunch of folks more afraid of living than of living correctly.

In the UK, a couple has been rejected the right to foster children because of their views that homosexuality is immoral.

They have fostered children before and wanted to get back into the system.

Since their last go-around, rules about what society honors as choices in sexuality have changed in the UK. And at this point, the Johns’ families views are not seen as inclusive enough.

So, folks are outraged that this family’s religious views are being trampled upon.

They are not.

What has happened is that the United Kingdom has decided that what you do in your own home, and your own children is basically your responsibility.

However, when you introduce someone the government is responsible for, you have to abide by the rules of common, polite society. Which means, you can’t tell those children that people are evil based on Religious Construct X or Y. You either raise the kids to believe what society has considered normal and good, or you don’t get to help raise kids who, yes, DO need to be fostered and treated well.

Here is the US, we have a different view. When gays are beaten to death in Wyoming or when soldiers are killed overseas, the inbreds at the Westboro Baptist Church in Kansas might show up to the funeral. One father of a slain soldier who had to put up with these hateful “Christians” sued the Phelps family to stop them from doing this to other families.

He lost. The case went all the way to the Supreme Court and they confirmed that religious bigots have more power and authority than the families of those killed in violence.

Now, this is set up as a freedom of speech argument and in legal parlance it may be. But I sincerely doubt that, say, an anti-war protest at a military funeral would be so supported. Or that, thankfully, a non-church hate group protesting the death of a gay young adult would be permitted.

No, this is about coddling to and knuckling under the influence of religion in this nation. A church, even a pack of straight-stick family tree hatemongers like those in Kansas, has more power than people.

We’ve got a lot to learn in this country. Folks who hate the Phelps family today had no issue silently agreeing with them when the fallen was Matthew Shephard. Folks in the UK who rightfully see religion being a private belief subordinate to the state much shake their heads when they see how high a place we put hateful speech as long as their is a cross in the shadows, particularly after we fought a war to win religious freedom.

Guess which states are led by Muslim hating religious bigots?

Yeah, the South, the Plains, Indiana and the Aryzona/Utah wedge of child sex lovers.